I’ve been reading Susan McBride’s books for quite a while and always enjoyed her writing style. She writes with lots of humor and her murder/mystery novels are top notch.Last week I saw that my library had “In the Pink: How I Met the Perfect (Younger) Man, Survived Breast Cancer, and Found True Happiness After 40” as an e book and I was compelled to borrow it. My good friend, who spent years fighting a blood cancer, multiple myeloma, which turned into Breast Cancer, had passed a day or so before I found the book.

Susan McBride and I are “friends” on Facebook and we’ve been following each other for a few years. She never hides anything from her friends and fans so I knew she had discovered her Breast Cancer about 12 years ago but when my friend passed from it earlier this month and I found Susan’s book I knew I had to read it.No cancer is easy to deal with and Ms. McBride was incredibly forthcoming telling readers everything she had to deal with. The lumpectomy she went through, then when more cancer cells were found she had to undergo yet another operation. I won’t even begin about her radiation treatments which caused her skin to burn, bubble, turn some weird color, and cause her massive pain.And while doing all this she was getting ready to marry her now husband, Ed, who is a little younger than her, maybe 12 years younger. (Go Susan!) Ed was her main support during all of this along with Ms. McBride’s mother and Ed’s mother.More than anything, Susan and Ed wanted to have a baby but Susan was in her 40’s and sometimes it’s tough to become pregnant when you’re heading into your middle years. Then there was the cancer and her treatments that she had to consider. The author did become pregnant but soon miscarried. Eventually she and Ed had a beautiful little girl, Emily Alice. Susan shows lots of pictures of this sweet child on her Facebook page and Emily really is a cutie.“In The Pink” is maybe 120 pages long and can easily be read in one day. It’s something that all women should read. Susan was very lucky with her cancer even though it was not easy to fight, cancer is never easy to fight. Unfortunately, I know too many women who fought Breast Cancer and lost: my aunt, my two cousins, and friends. I also have friends who have won the battle … kind of. One woman I know has been in remission for a few years. I wish I knew about this book last year when my friend was diagnosed with Breast Cancer. I would have bought it for her. It’s important for women to know that there is hope and that there are women who have beaten the disease and didn’t let the cancer stop them from their dreams of marriage, children, and writing their next best selling novel.I give Susan McBride a ton of credit for writing this short book. It must have been very hard to remember and actually write about what she went through and what she’s still going through. Yes, you can beat cancer but you always have to keep an eye open because those nasty cells can come by for another visit at any time.“In The Pink” is a positive book and not just for victims of cancer but for everyone, mostly women though, who have been told that once you hit 40 there’s more of a chance of getting hit by lightning than finding a husband; or that once you’re a little older you can’t have a baby; or that you cannot do something that you really want to do.

And while I’m talking about Susan, here’s the link to a review I wrote of her book, “Walk Into Silence.”

The end of the world finally happened like we all knew it would. Not because of zombies, or some strange virus, or even an alien attack from Planet Xymzko. Nope, it came when meteorites hit the Earth, demolishing the planet and killing millions and millions of people.

But Edgar Hill and his family somehow survived, not that Ed really paid much attention to the warnings that England was sending out. Nope, it was by pure luck that he was up and about in a semi drunken stupor that tragic sunny day when he saw the meteorites falling from the sky. He grabbed his wife, his little girl, and his infant son and basically threw them into the cellar where they lived until the army dug them out.

Living in the army camp with hundreds of other survivors wasn’t all that bad. They had food, water, and shelter, much more that what other survivors had. But some of these other survivors were not nice people. They tried to kill and steal and thought that this new Earth was theirs for the taking.

One day when Ed and a few others from the army camp were patrolling the area, helicopters came to the camp and took everyone to the other side of the country to get on boats that would take the survivors to another country. Edgar and the people he was with missed the helicopters but were told that more will come for them very shortly. The group might have been waiting for Godot because like Godot, the helicopters never showed up.

The only way the group could make it the hundreds of miles to where the boats were was to run and they only had a few weeks to get there. Not easy when Edgar was out of shape, had to run broken ground, run around valleys that were created by the falling meteorites, and not to mention avoiding some very dangerous people living off the land.

“The End of the World Running Club” byAdrian J. Walker is a fairly decent novel considering it’s very similar to most dystopian books. You know, fending for yourself, looking for water, food, shelter, getting into conflicts with miserable people and dangerous communities. It was different reading about a group of people who decided to run to get to their destination on time. If I had to run I’d kind of look up into the sky and decline. I have issues with just walking one mile, if I had to run hundreds … nah, not for me.

On their journey Ed and his running mates run into the usual problems that beset all characters in this type of novel. Nothing really special going on but I did enjoy reading the close to 500 pages and it was interesting and easy to get through.

If dystopian books are your cup of tea give this a try. Just don’t expect anything too special.

December 4, 2017. I knew this day was coming, I knew it for a while but even with the knowledge I’m heartsick.

My friend, my “sista” Janette passed early this morning. She was suffering with cancer but putting on a very brave positive front for her family and for her friends. Late at night she would call me and tell me how frightened she was and then we’d cry. I wouldn’t let her know that tears were streaming down my face because she needed to let her emotions come out and not try to make me feel better. That’s what Janette was like, always helping others and making them feel better.

A few months ago Janette and I were on the phone one late evening and she told me I needed to make a promise to her. I asked what she wanted me to do. She told me to keep her alive after her death. She told me to write about her, to tell all the stories, laughs, and tears we shared. I’ve written about Janette before and she loved seeing her name in my blog. She’d laugh and hoot with her little southern accent which always made me laugh.So I promised Janette I’d continue to talk about her in my blog. She said she wanted me to do it for me as well as for her. She made me promise not to forget her. I won’t.

There were a few other promises too. She told me I had to stay friends with her wonderful caring friend, Libby. She made me swear to continue to lean on, support, and love our friend, Cathy. She told me to write of her love for Daryl Hall and how he looked at her and smiled when she went to a Hall & Oates concert a few years back.“I promise you, I promise you, Janette, I will write it all down.” I want to thank her friend, Libby, for all the phone calls, the Facebook messages, and the texts she’s sent me and Cathy to make sure we were aware of everything that was going on as Janette became weaker and weaker.

Maybe five or six weeks ago Libby visited Janette in the hospice and Libby called me so I could speak with Janette for the last time. Janette knew who I was and told me how much she loved me and asked me to tell Cathy that she loved her too. She was weak and couldn’t speak for more than a minute or two but I will remember those last two minutes I spent on the phone with her.

Even though I’ve written about her before this is a new beginning. I am going to be writing about my “sista” Janette. It doesn’t matter if anyone else reads these entries or not because I am doing it for myself. I will keep Janette alive for me.

Christmas is swiftly approaching Oceanside, Florida and a secret Santa is giving out gifts to some members of the community. No one knows who he is but the gifts are wonderful except for the gift given to grouchy old Ben Grimes. Ben received a set of candlesticks but there was poison on them so when he cut his hand on the sticks’ sharper areas the poison got into his bloodstream and killed him.Heather Shepherd and her best friend, Amy Givens, were asked to help solve the murder because of their P.I. status. The dynamic duo has a lot of suspects to deal with.Ben Grimes was not a likable man. During this Holiday Season he was basically a Scrooge. No one cared him especially his neighbors. The house on one side of him couldn’t even be rented because he made life so miserable for anyone who dared to live there. The home on the other side of him was inhabited by Mrs. Kurtshed who did her level best to ignore her neighbor.But someone offed Mr. Grimes so Heather and Amy go to the Key West Key News office to speak with reporter, Hope Penwell, who was writing articles about the Secret Santa. Hope agreed to let the P.I.s see all the information she gathered.

Things start to get scary when Santa gives a gift to Heather, a pair of slippers that she asked for in her donut shop. Who would be listening to her conversation about what she wanted for Christmas except for all the customers who were eating there? After investigating some more Heather discovered that everyone who received a gift from Santa received the gift that they wished for. The card that came with the gift was lovely but had squiggly lines on them which was really a map leading to where they would be when they received their gift.

Okay, this was getting strange. Who killed Ben Grimes? Was it the Secret Santa; was it one of Mr. Grimes’ many haters; was it the woman who owned the dog that Ben Grimes bit when the the dog walked on his lawn; was it his next door neighbor; was it a reporter; was it one of Heather’s donut loving fans who visited her donut shop every day? No one knows at this point but the murder will soon be solved because Heater and Amy are on the case with a yummy donut in each hand,

“Eggnog Cream & Murder” is the 12th book in the Oceanside Cozy Mystery Series by Susan Gillard and it’s a good story with the Christmas/Holiday Season approaching.

This series is rated PG so the whole family can indulge in a good mystery. The characters are all likeable and friendly, except for the murderer of course, and reading the books will always make you yen for a donut. So snuggle up in front of a fire with some hot chocolate and a donut and enjoy this new installment to this fantastic series.

To see more reviews of Susan Gillard’s books please go to Susan’s page.

Don’t be afraid everyone, everything is under control … I hope. Zombies are in Trenton, New Jersey. I always knew the zombies were coming and they’re now on the East Coast. Battle down the hatches, folks, but have no fear, bounty hunter, Stephanie Plum is on the job.Stephanie and her trusty sidekick, Lula, have their hands full. They’re trying to find two men who skipped on their bail and the duo also have to feed Ethel, a boa constrictor, owned by Simon Diggery, a professional grave robber. Simon also jumped on his bail and would only let Stephanie take him in if she promised to care for his snake. Simon felt safer in jail because zombies were roaming the woods where his trailer was parked and he wanted nothing to do with them.

Then headless bodies started appearing. And then with bodies were found with holes in their heads where the brains were sucked out. See, I told you there are zombies out there.

Now Stephanie has to find her two bail jumpers, feed and care for Ethel the snake, and avoid the zombies who are after her. Things are never easy for Stephanie.

“Hardcore Twenty-Four” byJanet Evanovich, is the 24th installment of the popular Stephanie Plum series. I used to really like this series but each book is turning into the same ol’ same ol’ to me. Stephanie is still fooling around with her long-time heartthrob detective Joe Morelli, trying avoid the bed of the hot Ranger, and now the mysterious Diesel is back in town trying to bed Stephanie as well. This is getting a little old to me. It was bad enough with Morelli and Ranger chasing after our hero but when Diesel was added to the list of men a few books back the whole thing became tiresome and boring.

I do like Grandma Mazur, Stephanie’s mom and dad, and Lula. They add a lot of fun to the books but I am getting weary of the love/sex portions of it. It’s very soft porn and not offensive just over done.

There are still lots of laughs and it’s easy enough to get through this novel but I just wish Ms. Evanovich would do something different with all the men in Stephanie’s life. I really don’t think they’re all needed in the series.

Amy Givens is kind of tired of just helping Heather Shepherd in the donut shop and helping to solve murders. She’s a little restless and wants to do something for herself. Being a great best friend, Heather agree to help Amy find her true calling with the help of some yummy donuts.

Amy always liked art and drawing so she found an art studio where she could draw and do some sculpturing. The owner, Kendall Dakwa, seems like a nice woman and Amy hopes that Kendall can be her mentor.

A fight between two artists breaks out at the studio each accusing the other of stealing material they needed to make a sculpture. One of the artists, Tricia Mollins has to look for another item to use as s her sculpture so Kendall agrees to keep the studio open for her to continue working once she finds something she can use. But the next day Tricia is found murdered in the art studio. She was impaled on the top of a Christmas tree sculptor. Some was strong enough to throw her on to it and kill her but who? Could it be Ray, the man she was arguing with earlier in the day or possibly Kendall. Kendall was supposed to meet Amy the night of the murder and never showed up.

Now Heather and Amy are helping to investigate and readers of this series know that these two P.I.’s always find the bad guy.

“Spiced Maple & Murder” is the eleventh in author Susan Gillard’s Oceanside Cozy series. Like all the others it’s a fun, easy read filled with lots of action and love between all the characters. Another book not to be missed.

I posted this six years ago on Facebook. I still feel the same way about the holidays.

I was going through the worst time of my life when I wrote this and was trying to dig myself out of a deep hole. I had help – my Uncle Mickey, my cousin Alynn, and a new friend, Lawrence. I will never forget what any of these three people did to help me back then. What they and others did to help is what Thanksgiving, Christmas, Hanukkah and every other holiday is really about. I’m not sure if the majority of people realize it.

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Too many people, and the media, look at Thanksgiving as the start of the shopping season and getting what you want for less money than you normally would. Thesepeople should be thankful that shopping and getting up at 3:00 AM on Black Friday is the worst problem they have. There’s so much more to Thanksgiving and you only hear about these reasons in cursory measures.

Two of my close frinds have benn fighting major problems this past week or two. I’m sure the last thing they’re thinking about is buying a television set or getting concert tickets.

I’m very happy for everyone who has everything they need, have a way to get everything they want, and are healthy enough to get around everyday without even thinking twice about it.

But I’m thankful for my friends, my uncle, and my cousin who were doing what they could to help me during the past two years. I’m thankful that I know that life can be much harder than a lot of people suspect and there aren’t always happy endings. I’m thankful that I can see both sides of Thanksgiving and smart enough to know that not everyone eats turkey and all the trimmings on this day. And I’m thankful that everyday I wake up and know that life isn’t a bowl of cherries and appreciate the little things, like being able to walk three blocks to a store and celebrate it every time I’m able to do it.

Appreciating what you have and what you can do to help others is not just reserved for Thanksgiving and Christmas.